Burnt carrots

This is a theme.

The thing I hate more than anything- more than people swinging wide to make left turns- is looking forward to something that doesn’t happen.

Part of letting go means letting go of the dangling carrots and that probably sounds dumb. But I am so attached to these ideas and it’s easy for you to tell me to let go because they’re my attachments. You’re not letting go of yours either- I know. It’s not that you HAVE to stay here. It’s that staying means something you’re hoping for.

So I was working late for someone who does not have faith in me, plugging away at some stupid administrative shit that should be done by someone else, but that’s me because who else is going to do it and besides, my grade is admin bullshit regardless of the roles I actually have (but this is a tangent you have all heard) so I’m sitting here thinking as I do hours of admin bullshit that doesn’t require my brain and I think about how my amazing, brilliant, loving Night Bus and this elusive next grade in THIS job are both dangling carrots and oh hey look, it’s a theme. Here’s some shit that’s never going to happen or if it does, it’ll be YEARS past when it was due. That’s a sad connection (though we’ve made it before) and I cry a while, still typing away with my admin bullshit.

Then I think about how maybe it’s supposed to suck. Maybe I’m doomed to be a meerkat for love until the batteries die and I give up. That’s the recipe, right? When you give up. Maybe I’m supposed to get so fed up with waiting for what’s supposed to happen in this job that I say fuck it and find something else- something that is not what I imagined or have been waiting for. That felt like a positive result: mad is good, frustrated is good, because it leads to action and letting it all burn means building something else. But then I remembered just how long I put up with bullshit. I tolerate shit until the person giving me shit gets tired of it and makes me leave. I am not a masochist- I do not enjoy this.

I need lessons from the one who told me, “I can dump anybody.” I need to set some metaphorical fires. Or, as a friend said, I need to put a little fuck you back out into the universe. Some small fuck yous like throwing litter out my car window or not returning my cart to the corral. I would never throw litter but I see what she means. I need to claim some space, throw out some defiant fuck yous, and light some matches.

Dad had a theory that kids needed to eat a thousand cheeseburgers before they’d try something else. It was a great theory and it worked so well for T. This insightful and understanding theory probably applies to most kids, but it did not work on me, and we’ve joked over the years about what my cheeseburger quota must have been. Maybe my bullshit quota is also way different, and maybe I’m finally approaching done. It HAS been a very long time for both of these situations and for probably lots of others, so maybe I’m approaching my million cheeseburger limit.

The part I’m too tired to think about is how to set the carrots on fire. I may need some symbolic fuck you like blowing up ceramics with a shotgun in the desert. I remember filling a cart with cheap shitty ceramics at the thrift store. This one woman complimented our choice of some weird object and we promptly handed it to her.

“Oh, you don’t have to do that! You found it first,” she said.

“No, we’re gonna shoot it.”

I welcome ideas for some other gleefully unnecessary ways to let go. If I can turn that release into some dumb celebration- a defiant fuck you that makes me cackle- I might not cry (as much).

I'm just thinking about my paper solution

Things I wanted to share:

The other day I went to use my oven and it started beeping at me. New lights were flashing and it wouldn't turn on. I didn't understand what was wrong and I was dismayed that I was going to have to put in a work order and maybe it wouldn't work anymore. The next day I forgot I thought the oven wasn't working and pushed the buttons in the correct order and it turned right on. I even realized just before I hit the last button that the day before I'd been pushing on the button to the left and THAT'S why it was yelling at me. I forgot how to use my oven. This is why I have electric. In my defense, it's been a hot summer. I'm grateful I didn't put in a work order.

Work order completed. Resident forgot how to operate oven.

Also this week, I found mini ice cream cones at Trader Joe's. I have never wanted ice cream in a cone in my whole damn life but I saw these things and became a convert without even having tasted one. I was not wrong. They are called Hold the Cone and the flavor I got is chocolate. I don't even know what to tell you. I feel like Ratatouille over here with this flavor combination. Why didn't anyone tell me? They are 11g apiece and that is an ample dessert size in this house.

I ordered The Paper Solution which was written by one of my favorite podcasters, and I have actually been reading a physical book. I thought I would have heard it all in scattered places on the podcast, but I've learned some new things that seem very obvious once someone else lays them out for you. For example, when you're trying to sort through all your papers, you need to find a place to do that work. 

What?

You mean I should not create piles of like items on the floor in front of the entertainment center and in the path of my animals (one that is blind) as they go in and out through the pet door all day? You mean that I should have a designated workspace and trash, recycle, and shred boxes at the ready instead of kneeling over migrating piles? How did you know that I end up stacking them all together when people come over? Good grief. So that's a project. 

Jotting it down on a Friday

I'm gonna get back to blogs come hell or high water.

I went back on a dating app. Dating makes me miss my Night Bus so much. Everything does, but dating especially because it emphasizes just how brilliant, funny, interesting, and handsome he is/was and it jerks me between being mad as hell and sad as hell. It makes me think I will never find anyone close to as amazing as him- someone who really saw me, accepted me, challenged me, and loved me fiercely. This is such a bullshit outcome and I know none of you want to hear about it, but I'm still struggling hard with my loss.

And dating sucks- even with the knowledge that most people aren't right for you and that's fine. They're right for someone- even the guy who said his hobby is watching porn and the woman for him should have the same interests like watching porn. They aren't all that uh... honest. Many seem sane and even friendly. It's a roller coaster ride of enthusiasm. 

After three visits, the maintenance people still hadn't fixed my toilet, which was only swirling around helplessly every other flush. My downstairs neighbors must think I have major digestive issues. I told my favorite neighbor during our weekly walk and she informed me that she would fix my toilet, and did. She listened to my description of the problem, watched the mechanism, kept track of whether we were on a working flush or non-working flush turn, diagnosed the problem, adjusted the components and fixed the dang toilet. I was so impressed, especially because I was watching all of this and didn't understand which thing did what. Amazing.

She was disappointed in our maintenance crew, and when I confessed i had no idea how she'd figured out the problem even after watching, she pointed out that yeah, but you're not paid to fix it. They are. That sent us on a tangential conversation about strengths vs experience as they relate to career paths.

I have been evicting a LOT of baby spiders. They are all the same size and variety, so somebody had a bunch of spider babies in here. I'm glad to learn that I'm not as horrified by this as I would have expected. It's been a vision test as they descend from unexpected places. Was that speck in a closer visual field than my brain first identified? 

Next week is full, and not just because I like to spread out my birthday. I present the first of a new training and wrap up two long term classes. Plus 6 other things. I think I'll be working this weekend to prepare. That's the danger of working from home, but I'll feel better if I've got some of the prep work done.

This week I watched A Goofy Movie, which I enjoyed a lot more than I expected. It's very dated, but good, and I have the same review for the music. I started watching Last Dance on Netflix, and I can't recommend that enough. It's so good, even though I understand very little about basketball. This week I can't stop listening to When Am I Gonna Lose You, by Local Natives, and I'm also leaving my car radio on 97.7 KWNK.

Heavy times

Sometimes I wonder why I can't accomplish more projects through the week but it's amazing how much time the basic maintenance takes, like the 7 trips downstairs for laundry or the geezer walks for Gus. And yes, cooking all his food, even in batches. I'm disappointed that I haven't done 40 more things.

There's another 3 day weekend coming and I'm gonna try to pick 2 projects to finish and one of those will probably be going to the laundromat to wash blankets and the duvet. That's not a fun project. Does that even count as a project? 

It never feels like I get anywhere. I understand why the organization podcast lady says to try to skip the day to day stuff when you're working on a project, because the regular stuff will eat all your time. Plus I'm not a slow and steady person, so my projects have to happen when the energy bursts arrive.

Also, 3 day weekends feel like just enough time to catch up, not surge ahead. I am feeling disappointed that I didn't get to any of the big stuff- the things that make me feel like a terrible person.

1) Find someone who can do your taxes and the amendment for last year. At this point, the price is worth having it done. Six months of stress is enough. You haven't waited this long for at least a decade, so this isn't you- it's the situation. The financial guy told you this stuff after you filed 2018 and before 2019 so now you have to fix that first and you don't know how so you got stuck. Find somebody, pay them, and move on.

2) Take a day off and do those art projects. Ok, maybe one of them. You have two really fun ones waiting and you love them, so find some meaning and clear some space. Go find some baubles and play. It will energize you. 

3) Dive in to the reading. That's all it takes. Just start.

I thought 2019 had some heavy shit going on. It seemed like everyone was dealing with some tremendous and awful things, but this year isn't feeling much better. Maybe it's part of a bigger change. I hope so, because everyone is struggling and we all need light.

I watched Starship Troopers today in an effort to watch something light and ridiculous, but of course I forgot it's a Heinlein book, so it's full of social commentary and military service. When I read the book I felt it was more pointed observation than belief, and the movie seemed to be the same: the characters voicing pro-military sentiments while being ridiculously impervious to situations that regularly contradict their beliefs. Plus there was some stupid sexism and culture appropriation and stereotypes and a lack of representation that just illustrates everything we're combating right now and it annoyed the shit out of me. But Johnny Rico's (eyes are rolling out of my head, but I believe that was either Heinlein's choice or something similar) high school teacher who becomes their commander in the infantry says something about violence that I have conveniently pasted here for you:

Naked force has resolved more conflicts throughout history than any other factor. The contrary opinion, that violence doesn't solve anything, is wishful thinking at its worst. People who forget that always die.

It was weird to hear that right now, because some people are talking about how violence doesn't solve anything, referring to riots and looting of few, but neglecting to address the widespread and systemic violence of police brutality. Holding Pride up as a peaceful parade, forgetting that Pride came from Stonewall. Forgetting that peaceful protests were also dismissed. I read somewhere in all this that every freedom and right we have came from riots. And someone else just pointed out that while people say violence isn't the answer, it is what they're paying attention to... which means they're paying attention. Which action are you rewarding? 

Someone in class this week said the pandemic has pushed us into innovations we weren't ready to fully use yet. They were speaking of telehealth, but it feels like a parallel to me. We think we're moving along as fast as possible, doing as much as we can, and then something forces us ungracefully and we find we're more adaptable than we thought. We are flexible and resilient, but sometimes we need a violent shove. It's not nice, but it's effective. 

In my last tie in of the day, I read about a study that shows connection between far right supporters and low emotional intelligence. People with low emotional intelligence fear change, have low resilience, and not much capacity for empathy. Make America the way it was again, right?

Well, there are heavy things about. It's bad because it's hard and people get hurt. It's good because heavy things change the world. So while we're in this time, I'm going to have make 4) Give yourself some appreciation and understanding too. 

Know when to fold 'em

The most optimistic thing I saw today was a woman walking two pit bulls on retractable leashes.

Gus and I took a very long walk. He likes to take me all the way to the park before deciding he's too tired to walk home. I was thinking recently about how long and exhausting our first year was together until I got with his program. He behaves SO WELL when I give him exactly what he wants. Thankfully his wants are pretty reasonable:

Meals on time

At least one long daily walk

60% directional authority over those walks

Snuggles

Friends

Protection from the dishwasher 

Pats

Freedom to wander the apartment 

Elevator service

In return, he puts up with: 

Injections in the neck

A rotating assortment of medications and supplements

Car rides

Nail trims

Occasionally having to ride in the laundry basket or other undignified transportation 

Never getting doggy treats or rawhides 

Wearing belly bands or the blind dog halo in public

Unexpected shoes, papers, and grocery bags in his path

Having a front end that's shorter than his back end

...and it becomes the morning dew

I just finished listening to Maeve Binchy's Circle of Friends. I have been hankering to watch the movie again for a few years now, but it's not streaming or rentable. I thought it would make me sad and it did. I heard it differently this time than I read it many years ago- how those golden boys undo us, huh?

I dreamt of my latest golden boy last night. He showed up without notice and fit right back into my world so easily that I jolted this morning when I realized that he was not here. That he is not going to be here. I didn't know how happy and light I had felt until I was sad again. Ah, yes. That's the familiar place.

It was cold and rainy today and Gus and I didn't get to walk. I worked a lot and tomorrow will be good but tonight I will take a bath and cuddle my littles and allow myself a few minutes to think. I keep distractions going at all times but that's probably why I can't find clarity either. I can't bear it yet. I'll try to let it in for just a few minutes and then turn on the noise again. I'll try again tomorrow and maybe things will start to clear up.

I see this time that Nan did Benny an unintentional favor by doing her dirty, that Jack never loved Benny anyway, and that Bill could probably tell his own love story. Benny finds the good kinds of love in the end. All that's true, but MAN what a hurting.

"We look for love, no time for tears
Wasted water's all that is
And it don't make no flowers grow
Good things might come to those who wait
Not for those who wait too late
We gotta go for all we know"

Beautiful Sunday

Sundays usually feel like there's a timer on, like it's not a real day off because there's work the next day. That's probably a good indication that it's time to get a new job, but I was trying to put that feeling aside and enjoy today. I'm not sure if that worked or if it was just an enjoyable day.

Gus slept in his bed in the living room last night because I went to bed too late and he didn't want to move. He usually sleeps in his little bed in my room or with me if I run the dishwasher. I got up briefly and went back to bed and maybe 30 seconds later he padded around to my side of the bed and asked to come curl up with Mini and me. We all snuggled in and slept in for a while, and then I got a text from my amazing neighbor, who left a gift at my door:

I made breakfast to include reheating some roasted potatoes I made yesterday. Hello Fresh is teaching me how to cook, because the recipes are simple and really good. This is not an ad. They're not even giving out promo codes right now. I have been trying to make crispy potatoes for years and they are just not good, but these were wonderful and I just know how to do them now. This service has been very worth it.

Oh Blogger, your app update is just wonderful. Thank you. (Also not an ad.)

Then my neighbor and I took Gus on a really slow walk. We were out with him for two hours, just talking and letting him steer and sit as much as he wanted. This was probably the longest we've talked since the pandemic and it was a really nice visit and it was warm and comfortable outside.

Back inside, I ate a lunch of leftover homemade mac n cheese and ham steak and one of the cupcakes. I haven't had one of those in so many years and I could smell the chocolate before I even opened the package. It was delicious, and then I napped while watching Making the Cut, which is Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn's different version of Project Runway. I just love seeing what people make.

I eventually made it upright again and had a nice talk with Mom while walking Gus on a shorter route. I ran into a neighbor who gratefully and excitedly accepted a couple puzzles I was going to put at our makeshift neighborhood donation center. 

Then Tracy and I worked through some barre exercises. We have been taking a ballet class online together, and she's been teaching me form in between. It gives us both some more exercise and time together. It feels nice to be in even more regular contact and it's fun.

I ate some leftover Hello Fresh for dinner (who am I?) and sorted laundry in preparation for tomorrow, and then I sat down to sew a pocket in my jeans. It's been on my list for months and months and I'd picked a fabric that would look reasonably aligned with my jeans and wouldn't itch my skin. The jeans don't have front pockets, and I regularly have to fish around in my pants after the pump has fallen down a leg. I catch the belt clip on everything, so I don't wear that anymore. I just tuck it in and hope for the best. I was so proud of myself and felt all COVID productive. Then I tested the pocket and the attachment stitches held, but the side ripped like a wet Kleenex. 

It ripped so easily that it didn't even make noise. And look- it wasn't my stitches that failed. That is some ugly sewing, but the stitches held. It was my fabric choice that failed. 

In episode 3 of Making the Cut, the judges chewed on Josh and Troy got chewed on  for having mismatched and disconnected prints. Josh immediately took responsibility, saying, "It was gorgeous, but if the prints are foul, that's on me." He said Troy was a genius and should stay, and he volunteered to go. He was so nice about his skills vs Troy's during the episode, and at his end he was just light and gracious.

I was disappointed in my pocket failure, but not terribly! It felt representative of COVID productivity- just because it didn't work out as intended doesn't mean it wasn't time well spent. I think it was the first episode when one of the designers said they like to make a little bit of their piece to see how it works before making the whole thing. That seems like time well spent, for sure. My idea was gorgeous, but my sewing skills are questionable and my fabric was foul, so I think I will defer to the experts and buy a premade pocket.

I'm sure I can fit another cubby shelf in here...

This craziness...

We're supposed to blog and journal about this time to document what things were like and I don't know what to say. It feels kind of like basic training where everything was suddenly so profoundly different that there was just no way to summarize or speak to it. 

I remember reading somewhere about how incredibly boring terrifying things can be. I wish I could remember what that was about. I feel restless already and probably because I was home sick with strep and then isolated to recover and then isolated by mandate. I want to rearrange furniture and make art and build a bookshelf and buy a house and change careers, but I'll just wash the dishes again. 

Well, that was cheery. Maybe I will rearrange some furniture. That always makes me feel better. 

Buzzing

The Hello Fresh meals are really tasty and I think they are teaching me how to cook. Maybe that's an illusion though, because I messed up the very clear instructions and had to remake the sauce, but I didn't have anymore cream cheese so I thought I'd try one of the 40 extra sour cream packets I have now. Sour cream is not a good substitute for cream cheese. I keep thinking I'll stop the plan because it's expensive and there's a lot of packaging involved and I make a hideous mess every time, but then I eat the food and I'm converted all over again. This happens every single week. But to give you an idea of how much of a mess I make, I finally finished washing all the dishes and then I felt like Vanna White with all the open cupboard doors I just had to close.

Yesterday I went to Zumba, attended my local Democratic caucus, walked Gus, then drove out to Carson and visited with Mike for 3 hours. When I got home, I was so tired that I ate a few crackers with cheese and went to bed. I couldn't sleep, though, because I knew by then that I wasn't having a date today and it made me really sad and think horrible things so I watched the Bikram documentary on Netflix, which was horrifying. Who'd have seen this coming: a dude stole someone else's work and claimed to have invented it, is an extreme narcissist, lies, takes advantage of and rapes women, escapes justice, and still operates a thriving business outside the US. The method is good, of course, because he stole it from someone more capable than himself, so it's hard for people to reconcile how he can be such a monster while their bodies function better than ever before under his tutelage. That was seriously disturbing and I was really awake then, so I decided to watch The Notebook so I could feel even worse about my dating situation and have terrible dreams all night. 

I'm hoping the Mercury retrograde is the culprit for technology problems. My IT guy (Ant) is in LA indefinitely and there is a mysterious beeping in my living room. I can't find it. I am not insane. No earbuds or bluetooth work for conversations on my phone and my aux cord won't work in my car, so no iPod, no music. I think it's the jack, but there isn't anything I can do about that. Hence the bluetooth, so WHY DOESN'T THAT WORK.

Today I learned my Clutterbug style, and before you groan at another personality assessment, let me tell you how amazing it is. I am a bee- like a busy bee- and it was so right on it made slow chuckle. I have a lot of projects going on and I keep my tools for that project out so I can remind myself about it. If I put them away, I won't remember to do it. This tells me that it's really important to dedicate time to finish projects so that I can put things away.

I also learned that while bees prefer micro-organizing, it's better to start with macro-organizing until you get a handle on things. This means sorting in larger categories for now. I immediately (started a new project) gathered all my useless earbuds and cords and extra rubber earbud replacements in one bin and decided that's where electronic things live! Then I created a mail drawer and a tool drawer and combined all the candles and matches and extra candles from their various homes into a bin large enough to hold them all and immediately found the candle plate I've been looking everywhere for. It was put away in the candle bin. Why didn't I look there? 

Bees WANT labels and super organization, but they need to see their stuff. The lady mentioned baskets, so that was all the invitation I needed to run out to the thrift store for coat hooks and more baskets. I want a cool coat hook rack but I guess I'll have to know it when I see it and then bribe someone to install it because I just did not find something that felt right. I did find a over the door shoe organizer that I used to sort my gloves and hats so now I can SEE them. I had a round mesh hanging thing but it took up a lot of room and was somehow collapsing in on itself at the same time- how? I also found a bunch of cool wire baskets so that'll be fun.

Tomorrow I'll be working, then hooping and making Gus food, and then I'll probably rearrange furniture.

In the other podcast I love, they asked a different kind of know yourself question: do you relax better at home or away? Away, away, away... oh my god yes, away.

Maybe I do like teaching

Today I taught my class and then I taught the first workshop in a series of three about applying for government jobs. I have learned a lot about the process over the last 4 years of teaching my class (and then some) and people keep sending their friends and coworkers my way for help, so I created the workshops. I asked a coworker for support because she went through my workshop in the class and found a lot of success. She'd been applying to many jobs with no luck before, and after the workshop she got referred for every job she applied for, then interviewed and was offered a good handful. She added credibility, but also shared some of her experiences and answered some questions. There was another friend in a different department who wanted to help out with the workshops as soon as he heard about them. He's got a good view of the interviewing side and all the background work the hiring manager does and also shared his experience. It was two hours and we filled every bit of it answering questions and presenting information. One participant was pretty familiar with the process and still said he gained a lot of new info to take to his group. It went so well! We have changes to make for next time for the phone participants, but it was good and I feel happy and proud of us. I did most of the presentation, but my friend presented his part and both of them added information. It felt collaborative and successful. What was really cool was that Dad wanted to attend, so we sent him an invite and he listened in. That reminded me of when I was working in an office in Virginia and he'd tell me when he was going to La Jolla so I could tune in to their pier webcam and watch him surf. That was cool. :)

I was exhausted and took myself out for a burger on the way home, then dragged myself to ballet and enjoyed the burn and the satisfaction that I actually went. I had some work to catch up on so I'm getting ready for bed now but that was a satisfying day.

Trying to write blogs

Today was feeling like a good day. I got things done this morning, I had a delightful development in learning how to do my hair, I remembered everything I was supposed to do, and then I had an informal presentation that felt messy. I'm actually fine with messy, but I felt flustered, and that annoys me because I feel like I shouldn't still be bothered by nerves just because it's a new group. I've been doing this long enough that I feel like it shouldn't fluster me, as if that has anything to do with anything. It was really fine, but I am looking forward to a more structured visit.

I figured if I wrote about it I'd be able to let it go. 

It was a good week, though. I love my class- they are awesome people, and I am excited about how we'll do the content this year. I went to ballet and I love that class. My legs love that class. I also did some hoop dance and we got a trick down that has been eluding us. I'm also planning on doing some Zumba this weekend, and that makes me happy. I like doing exercise that's fun. 

This week, I am obsessed with 

-Kelly Willis, He Don't Care About Me

-Next in Fashion on Netflix

-Dove dark chocolate Promises, although the promises are either stolen or trite or both and I hate every single thing they say. I also know chocolate snobs (you know who you are) that think Dove is crap chocolate, but you're wrong. Maybe I'm saying that because it is really smooth and that is currently a feature I need in my chocolate, but this shit really is silky smooth. Maybe the silkiness comes from silicone and ground up cat noses and you can still take your chocolate snobbery elsewhere.